The National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS) has guided our national response to the domestic HIV epidemic since its initial release in July of 2010. Six years later, while substantial progress has been made in several key areas of the strategy, progress in others have stalled, according to a new Indicator Supplement released just last week by the White House’s Office of National AIDS Policy to celebrate the six-year anniversary of the NHAS.

Few Supreme Court decisions have been as consequential to women’s health in Texas and nationally as Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt. In a 5-to-3 ruling last month, the Court struck down a Texas law that made it more difficult to get an abortion and reaffirmed constitutional protections on reproductive freedom.

Following the Democratic National Convention, Secretary Hillary Clinton published a press release which describes her plan to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic if she becomes president and highlighted the speech of Daniel Driffin a man living with HIV from Atlanta. The press release described three main components of her plan, including convening an “End the Epidemic” working group, fully implementing and strengthening the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, and launching a campaign to reduce the stigma and discrimination faced by those living with HIV.

Congress left Washington three weeks ago for its seven-and-a-half-week recess in order to hold the two national political conventions. Now it’s time for the Policy Update to take a summer break. We’ll be back after Labor Day. Of course, while we hope all of you will find some time to relax, we don’t want you to forget policy and advocacy completely. Here are a few things to keep in mind and get ready for in September.

“Bringing the marginalized to the center of attention,” could have been the subtheme for this year’s International AIDS Conference held July 18-23, 2016 in Durban, South Africa. Access, Equity, and Rights Now was the conference’s official theme. It demanded that we focus on key populations affected by HIV that countries and communities often ignore, shun, criminalize, and stigmatize.